Monthly archives for November, 2012

A pack of miniature chocolate shaped Christmas trees from Divine. I really like the look of these Christmas trees, they are quite cute and fun. Divine is not my favourite chocolate so whilst I enjoyed the flavour, I prefer other dark chocolates for vegans. The shapes are a solid chocolate, I think they would be great in an advent calendar, perhaps you could use them in a home made one, or they would make a nice little sweet nibble at Christmas. I also thought the price is quite high, however I did buy them from Oxfam so at least some of the profits go to a good cause. The packaging is festive and I like that Divine use fair trade ingredients.

Each 100gram pack is suitable for vegans and vegetarians. Per 4 trees is 119kcal. Fair trade. I bought mine in Oxfam for £3.99

A stone baked garlic bread pizza from Goodfella’s. I am really pleased to find a vegan friendly garlic bread. This one from Goodfellas is quite thin and crispy which was good, but I think it would have been better a little thicker. The flavour was a pleasant garlic which was not too strong. I thought it was fairly good and ideal for when you cannot be bothered to make your own even though it is super easy. I like garlic bread with salads as it adds a bit of texture to the meal and it is warming and full of flavour.

Each 198gram pizza is suitable for vegetarians and vegan as far as I can tell. The ingredients are Wheat Flour, Garlic flavoured vegetable oil, garlic puree, salt, parsley, water salt and yeast. Per half a pizza is 442kcal. I bought mine from Morrisons Supermarket.

A pack of spicy oriental snack mix with crispy rice crackers and fiery wasabi peas from the Christmas range at Morrisons supermarket. I think this mix is fabulous, there are all kinds of shapes and lovely looking nibbles in this pack, it is so inviting to grab a handful. The rice crackers and peas and sticks are all just lovely with the different textures and flavours, there is soy sauce, wasabi, horseradish, seaweed and paprika to name just a few flavours. I really enjoyed them and I will be serving some of these to my guests at Christmas. One of the better snack foods out there at the moment in my opinion.

Each 200gram pack is suitable for vegetarians and vegan as far as I can tell. Per25gram portion is 102kcal. Sold in the festive section of Morrisons supermarket.

A mild spiced curry of mushrooms, carrots, red and green peppers, creamed coconut and corriander from the Free From range of Tesco. The curry is very easy to cook, either microwave or warm up on the hob. The curry does not look appealing, it is like a murky brown colour. It is a mild curry flavour which is OK, you can hardly make out the vegetables, it was a bit mushy and the vegetable pieces were very small, the only thing you can make out is the mushrooms. It was OK but not something I would buy again.

Each 300gram pack is suitable for vegetarians and vegan as far as I can tell. Gluten, Wheat and Milk Free. Per pack is 185kcal. Sold in Tesco

A Mediterranean vegetable soup in a concentrate squeezable format from Heinz. Firstly I would not call this a vegetable soup as it is so rich in tomato, I would call it a mostly tomato soup with a little bit of vegetables. The paste that comes out of the tube is a little bit strange but you add it to hot water, stir and serve. It is very easy to make. The flavour is mostly tomato which is quite pleasant and mild. For an instant soup I thought it worked pretty good. These are fine to keep in the cupboard for an occasional soup, I would also consider putting the paste into a base of a casserole or stew as the flavour is quite strong tomato.

Each 70gram pack serving one person is suitable for vegetarians and vegan as far as I can tell. Per portion is 94kcal. Sold in supermarkets.

A jar of Marachino flavour Cocktail Cherries from Opies. I have recently discovered that these beauties are vegan and I am thrilled to bits. I love love love cocktail cherries but I have not had them for years. These lovely looking cherries are vibrant and lovely to look at, the flavour has a slightly almond taste with sweet cherry. I know that over Christmas every alcoholic drink and soft drink I have, will have one of these lovely cherries in it. They are great for cocktails, they go lovely in shorts like brandy and add a little swish of colour to sparkling wine. I am really chuffed to have re-discovered these wonderful cherries.

Each 225gram jar of cocktail cherries are suitable for vegans and vegetarians. (confirmed via email from Opies, all of their products are vegan and vegetarian excluding the pickled eggs which are vegetarian only). Per 100grams is 719kcal. Sold in supermarkets. I got mine in Morrisons on offer buy two for £2.

A pack of sugar coated roasted peanuts from Lidl supermarket. Before I was vegan I liked to have the honey roasted peanuts so it is really good to find an alternative. The peanuts are savoury and the outer part is a slightly hard and crispy which is sweet. They have a really good flavour and taste really pleasant, quite addictive. The peanuts make a fun party food or ideal for sharing.

Each 150gram pack is suitable for vegetarians and vegan as far as I can tell. Per 100grams is 484kcal. Sold in Lidl supermarkets , I found them in the festive food section.

A pack of organic Mayan rainforest chewing gum in a lime flavour from Chicza. A natural and sustainable chewing gum flavoured using wild and native fruits herbs and spices, this helps to sustain the Mayan rainforest. I really enjoyed the flavour of this gum, the zingy lime is a delight. I was not as fond of the texture of the gum. It crumbles in your mouth after a couple of chews and it did stick to my teeth a little which is a shame because it is a good idea. I like that it is all natural but I think it still need a bit of work.

Each 30gram pack is suitable for vegans and vegetarians. Organic and sustainable. The packaging is biodegradable. I bought mine from an online vegan retailer.

A festive mix of salted and salt & black pepper pretzels in star shapes from Morrisons supermarket. I really enjoyed these pretzels as did my family over the weekend during our guilty pleasure of watching the Saturday night TV shows. They had a pleasant salty and salt & pepper flavour, it was not overpowering and the texture was crispy. The pretzels were quite thin which I really liked. I also like the shapes. Will definitely get some more at Christmas. Perfect for sharing.

Each 200gram pack is suitable for vegetarians and vegan as far as I can tell. Per 50grams is 102kcal. Sold in Morrisons.

A pack of 6 dark dark chocolate pralines handmade from Cocoa Loco. I found these in Oxfam for £5.99. The crispy sugar coated shell adds a nice texture, the praline is really lovely and has a pleasant hazelnut flavour, the chocolate is not bad. The pralines are fairly good. I like to have this kind of thing with a hot cup of tea or coffee, one is enough so they should last a while. I also like the fact that they are fair trade. They would make a nice gift and some of the profits will go to Oxfam too.

Each 115gram pack is suitable for vegans and vegetarians. Fair Trade. Made with 73% cocoa solids. Sold in Oxfam.

A pack of vegan biscuit flavour sweet pastilles from Leone. These little packs of sweets have a really nice flavour, which has a hint of vanilla and biscuit flavours. The pastilles are hard little sweets, hard but easy to chew. Perfect to keep in your pocket or handbag for a little treat. I found these on vegan store.

Each 30gram pack is suitable for vegans and vegetarians. Made in Italy. Sold on line at vegan store.

A pack of mini vegetable samosas and mini onion bhajis from the Partytime range of Lidl supermarket. On my last visit to Lidl I discovered quite a few vegan friendly products, Lidl has improved so much I will have to go more often.

These party mini samosas and mini bhajis are quite good. They were a bit spicier than I was expecting, they are a medium heat. The little bhajis had nice bits of onion in there and tasted lovely, the samosas were packed with vegetables and had a really good flavour, the pastry was also crispy and light. All in all I would be happy to put these out for guests or have them as a side dish to an Indian meal.

Each 416gram pack contains 8 samosas and 8 bhajis. Suitable for vegetarians and vegan as far as I can tell. Per samosa is 67kcal, per bhaji is 42kcal. Sold in the freezer section at Lidl supermarket.

The Vegetarian Society have some lovely festive dishes on their website. The recipes range from Christmas pie, Carrot & Cashew Fan, Smoked Bean Curd Bakes with Shiitake and Walnut Stuffing, Raspberry Marzipan and Brandy Ice Cream with Lemon Palmiers and Soft Caramel Cherry Bombe with Hot Chocolate Sauce. Lots of recipes many of them are vegan friendly I will definitely be giving some a go.

Also you can order free recipe cards and free leaflets and postcards from The Vegetarian Society. That way you can just have the card in the kitchen with you.

A pack of ready to eat meat free chicken style pieces with a Tikka flavour from Redwood’s. Brought out in their festive range these new vegan Chicken Tikka pieces are designed to be used in stir frys, curries, salads or fajitas. You can eat them cold but I prefer to warm them up. The texture is pretty good, similar to other chicken style products they make, the tikka seasoning is pleasant and has a nice warm kick. I thought that the tikka pieces make a nice change and have quite a few uses, so a great item to have in the fridge over the festive season.

Each 150gram pack is suitable for vegans and vegetarians. Per 100grams is 259kcal. Vegan & Vegetarian Society Approved. No artificial colours, flavours or preservatives. Sold on line at vegan retailers, from Redwood foods direct or you can ask your local health food shop to get some in for you if they have not got any.

A jar of sliced lemons in lemon juice from Opies. The festive season is coming up so I am stocking my cupboard ready. These Lemon slices make a great addition to my festive drinks shelf. The lemon slices are lovely and are perfect to go in any drink or cocktail to add a little bit of lemony zesty flavour. I also like to have a slice or two in tea or just in hot water. The texture of the lemon is good and the flavour is very lemony like you would expect. I like that you can keep these in the fridge once opened for up to 2 weeks, I often find I throw lemons away when I get fresh ones before I have had a chance to use them, so this for me cuts down on waste.

Each 350gram jar of lemons are suitable for vegans & vegetarians (confirmed via email from Opies, all of their products are vegan and vegetarian excluding the pickled eggs which are vegetarian only). Per 100grams is 33kcal. Sold in supermarkets. I got mine in the Coop.